Have you ever been caught up in a whirlpool? Everything spins so madly you don’t know which end is up and fighting against it leadsonly to exhaustion. A worry whirlpool is much the same. Something is causing incessant worry, making your head spin. The resulting negative thoughts cause stress and anxiety, and fighting it only draws you in deeper.

Not only that, but because thoughts become things, your worrisome thoughts are vibrating out and matching up with other equally undesirable thoughts, conversations and situations, until it seems your whole life is turned on its head.

If you can’t fight your way out, how do you escape this downward spiral?

The obvious solution is to stop thinking those thoughts, but this is much easier said than done because the Law of Attraction is keeping them coming. It’s much easier to distract yourself by taking a nap, watching a movie or visiting a friend. This will give you the mental space necessary to begin thinking different thoughts. You won’t shift directly from worry to happiness, but you can bridge your worrisome thoughts by repeating phrases such as, ‘things always work out for me’ or ‘I don’t have to think about that right now’ to break the cycle.

Think of a well-worn path in a field. It’s easy to keep going down that path because the weeds have been trampled down. You don’t have to think about where you’re putting your feet, it’s become automatic. When you make the decision to take a new path, it’s difficult initially but gets easier each time you use it, while the old path grows over and is forgotten.

It’s the same with your thoughts. Each time you choose the new path it becomes easier and strengthens your resolve. You are creating new patterns of thought that serve you while simultaneously releasing the negative ones that don’t.

You can take things further with the ‘tell a new story’ process. As the worrisome situation shows what you don’t want, what you do want becomes clear. I recommend sitting with pen and paper and imagining it unfolding exactly as you’d like. You don’t have to know how it can be resolved or even the precise results you want. Just write how happy everyone is with the miraculous solution, holding the feeling in your heart while picturing their happy faces.

If worrying about a loved one, remember we are eternal beings who chose certain challenges each lifetime for the learning it will provide. What we think is a bad thing may be just the experience needed for their spiritual growth, leading to much happier circumstances for them.

If that doesn’t bring relief, consider that worrying gives more energy, thus power, to unwanted things. It is essentially praying for what you don’t want, and robs you of the ability to help. Your best defence against worry whirlpools is to shine your light as bright as you can. This will uplift those you were worried about, and anyone else lucky enough to be around you.

Originally Published: September 20, 2017

Alexandria Barker, Contributor

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Alexandria Barker is a certified life coach and Soul Re-alignment practitioner, providing healing at the deepest level for lasting transformation. She is also an Infinite Possibilities Coach specializing in freeing you of limiting beliefs, enabling you to live the life of your dreams.